2020 Rugby League European Championship
# 2020 Rugby League European Championship

The 2020 European Championship was a planned international rugby league tournament that would have taken place in October and November 2020. Six teams were to have competed in the 2020 edition, with Italy and Spain joining the four teams that participated in 2018. The teams were split into two pools of three, where the winners would have contested a final and the bottom teams would have been relegated to the 2022 European Championship B. The tournament was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

## Background

A restructured European Championship system was announced in January 2020, with the top tier to be contested by six teams across two pools. The draw was created by on 31 January 2020 at the Red Star Sport Society Media Centre in Belgrade by Stevan Stevanović and Jelena Stojiljković, the captains of Serbia's men's and women's rugby league teams, respectively. France, Scotland, and Italy comprised one pool, and Wales, Ireland, and Spain the other.

The tournament was cancelled in July 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Postponement to 2021 was not possible due to the 2021 Rugby League World Cup – Men’s tournament. The 2022 European Championship was to expand to eight teams, with England and the winner of 2020 European Championship B (to be held in 2021) joining. However, the World Cup was subsequently postponed to 2022 which will likely cause another schedule revision.

